Announcing Nominees for 2024 Outer Critics Circle Awards
Jocelyn Bioh and Paula Vogel (Photo: Guzman@foureleven)
(Left) Jocelyn Bioh and (Right) Paula Vogel (Photo: Guzman@foureleven)

New York, NY – The Outer Critics Circle (OCC), the official organization of writers on New York theatre for out-of-town newspapers and national publications, today announced the nominees for the 2024 Outer Critics Circle Awards, honoring the 2023-2024 Broadway and Off-Broadway season. Winners of the 2024 Annual Outer Critics Circle Awards will be announced via press release on Monday, May 13, followed by an awards ceremony held on Thursday, May 23, 2024.

2024 OUTER CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD NOMINATIONS

[* denotes a Dramatists Guild member]

OUTSTANDING NEW BROADWAY PLAY

Jaja’s African Hair Braiding by Jocelyn Bioh*
Mother Play: A Play in Five Evictions by Paula Vogel*
Patriots by Peter Morgan
Stereophonic by David Adjmi
The Shark Is Broken by Joseph Nixon and Ian Shaw

OUTSTANDING NEW BROADWAY MUSICAL

Days of Wine and Roses book by Craig Lucas*, music and lyrics by Adam Guettel*
Suffs book, music, and lyrics by Shaina Taub*
The Great Gatsby book by Kait Kerrigan*, music by Jason Howland, lyrics by Nathan Tysen*
The Outsiders book by Adam Rapp*; book music, and lyrics by Justin Levine
Water For Elephants book by Rick Elice*, music and lyrics by PigPen Theatre Co.

OUTSTANDING NEW OFF-BROADWAY MUSICAL

Buena Vista Social Club book by Marco Ramirez, music and lyrics by Buena Vista Social Club
Dead Outlaw book by Itamar Moses*, music and lyrics by David Yazbek and Erik Della Penna
Illinoise book by Justin Peck and Jackie Sibblies Drury, music and lyrics by Sufjan Stevens
Teeth book and music by Anna K. Jacobs*, book and lyrics by Michael R. Jackson*
The Connector book by Jonathan Marc Sherman*, music and lyrics by Jason Robert Brown*

OUTSTANDING NEW OFF-BROADWAY PLAY

Dig by Theresa Rebeck*
King of the Jews by Leslie Epstein*
King James by Rajiv Joseph*
Primary Trust by Eboni Booth*
Swing State by Rebecca Gilman*

JOHN GASSNER AWARD
(New American play preferably by a new playwright)

Job by Max Wolf Friedlich
Manhatta by Mary Kathryn Nagle
Oh, Mary! by Cole Escola
The Apiary by Kate Douglas*
Wet Brain by John J. Caswell Jr.

Outstanding Revival OF A MUSICAL

Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club book by Joe Masteroff, music by John Kander*, lyrics by Fred Ebb
Here Lies Love music and lyrics by David Byrne, music by Fatboy Slim
I Can Get It For You Wholesale book by Jerome Weidman (based on his novel), music and lyrics by Harold Rome, book revisions by John Weidman*
Monty Python’s Spamalot book, music, and lyrics by Eric Idle; music by John Du Prez
The Who’s Tommy book, music, and lyrics by Pete Townshend; book by Des McAnuff

Outstanding Revival OF A PLAY

An Enemy of the People by Henrik Ibsen, a new version by Amy Herzog*
Appropriate by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins*
Doubt: A Parable by John Patrick Shanley*
Mary Jane by Amy Herzog*
Philadelphia, Here I Come! by Brian Friel
Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch by Ossie Davis
 

Outstanding Lead Performer in a Broadway Play

Jessica Lange – Mother Play
Rachel McAdams – Mary Jane
Sarah Paulson – Appropriate
Jeremy Strong – An Enemy of the People
Michael Stuhlbarg – Patriots
 

Outstanding Featured Performer in a Broadway Play

Billy Eugene Jones – Purlie Victorious
Celia Keenan-Bolger – Mother Play
Alex Moffat – The Cottage
Jim Parsons – Mother Play
Sarah Pidgeon - Stereophonic
Kara Young – Purlie Victorious

Outstanding Lead Performer in a Broadway Musical

Ali Louis Bourzgui – The Who's Tommy
Brian d'Arcy James – Days of Wine and Roses
Casey Likes – Back to the Future
Kelli O'Hara – Days of Wine and Roses
Maryann Plunkett – The Notebook

Outstanding Featured Performer in a Broadway Musical

Roger Bart – Back to the Future
Justin Guarini – Once Upon a One More Time
Leslie Rodriguez Kritzer – Spamalot
Kecia Lewis – Hell's Kitchen
Bebe Neuwirth – Cabaret

Outstanding Lead Performer in an Off-Broadway Musical

Jeb Brown – Dead Outlaw
Andrew Durand – Dead Outlaw
Alyse Alan Louis - Teeth
Ben Levi Ross – The Connector
Ricky Ubeda - Illinoise

Outstanding Featured Performer in an Off-Broadway Musical

Ben Cook – Illinoise
Hannah Cruz – The Connector
Julia Knitel – Dead Outlaw
Judy Kuhn – I Can Get It For You Wholesale
Jessica Molaskey – The Connector
Thom Sesma – Dead Outlaw

Outstanding Lead Performer in an Off-Broadway Play

Cole Escola – Oh, Mary!
Mary Beth Fisher – Swing State
William Jackson Harper – Primary Trust
Marie Mullen – The Saviour
Paul Sparks – Waiting for Godot

Outstanding Featured Performer in an Off-Broadway Play

Gus Birney – Our Class
April Matthis – Primary Trust
Conrad Ricamora – Oh, Mary!
Jay O. Sanders – Primary Trust
Bubba Weiler – Swing State

Outstanding Solo PERFORMANCE

Eddie Izzard – Hamlet
Patrick Page – All the Devils are Here
Mona Pirnot – I Love You So Much I Could Die
Robert Montano – Small
John Rubenstein – Eisenhower: This Piece of Ground                                        

Outstanding Book of a Musical (Broadway or Off-Broadway)

Justin Peck and Jackie Sibblies Drury - Illinoise
Anna K. Jacobs* and Michael R. Jackson* – Teeth
Itamar Moses* – Dead Outlaw
Jonathan Marc Sherman* – The Connector
Shaina Taub* - Suffs

Outstanding Score (Broadway or Off-Broadway

Jason Robert Brown* – The Connector
Will Butler – Stereophonic
Adam Guettel* – Days of Wine and Roses
David Yazbek and Erik Della Penna – Dead Outlaw
Shaina Taub* - Suffs

Outstanding Orchestrations (Broadway or Off-Broadway

Timo Andres - Illinoise
Adam Guettel* and Jamie Lawrence – Days of Wine and Roses
Marco Paguia – Buena Vista Social Club
Michael Starobin – Suffs
Erik Della Penna, Dean Sharenow, and David Yazbek – Dead Outlaw

Outstanding Direction of a Musical (Broadway or Off-Broadway

David Cromer – Dead Outlaw
Michael Greif – Days of Wine and Roses
Daisy Prince – The Connector
Leigh Silverman - Suffs
Jessica Stone – Water for Elephants

Outstanding Direction of a Play (Broadway or Off-Broadway

Knud Adams – Primary Trust
Daniel Aukin – Stereophonic
Robert Falls – Swing State
Kenny Leon – Purlie Victorious
Lila Neugebauer – Appropriate

Outstanding Choreography (Broadway or Off-Broadway

Jesse Robb and Shana Carroll – Water for Elephants
Rick Kuperman and Jeff Kuperman – The Outsiders
Lorin Latarro – The Who's Tommy
Patricia Delgado and Justin Peck – Buena Vista Social Club
Justin Peck — Illinoise

Outstanding Scenic Design (Broadway or Off-Broadway) 

Paul Tate dePoo III – The Cottage
Paul Tate dePoo III – The Great Gatsby
Dots – Appropriate
David Korins – Here Lies Love
David Zinn – Stereophonic 

Outstanding Costume Design (Broadway or Off-Broadway)

Dede Ayite – Jaja's African Hair Braiding
Enver Chakartash – Stereophonic
Enver Chakartash – Teeth
Linda Cho – The Great Gatsby
Sydney Maresca – The Cottage
  
Outstanding Lighting Design (Broadway or Off-Broadway)

Bradley King – Water for Elephants
Brian MacDevitt – The Outsiders
Justin Townsend – Here Lies Love
Tim Lutkin and Hugh Vanstone – Back to the Future
Amanda Zieve – The Who's Tommy

Outstanding Sound Design (Broadway or Off-Broadway)

Tom Gibbons – Grey House
Gareth Owen – Back to the Future
Gareth Owen – The Who's Tommy
Ryan Rumery – Stereophonic
M.L. Dogg and Cody Spencer – Here Lies Love
 
Outstanding VIDEO/Projections (Broadway or Off-Broadway) David Bengali – Water for Elephants
Paul Tate dePoo III — The Great Gatsby
Peter Nigrini – The Who's Tommy
Finn Ross – Back to the Future
Ash J. Woodward - Patriots


Broadway Productions Considered in Full 

Grey House, Once Upon a One More Time, The Cottage, Back to the Future, The Shark Is Broken, Purlie Victorious, Melissa Etheridge: My Window, Jaja's African Hair Braiding, Merrily We Roll Along, Gutenberg! The Musical!, I Need That, Monty Python's Spamalot, How to Dance in Ohio, Appropriate, Days of Wine and Roses, Doubt, The Notebook, An Enemy of the People, Water for Elephants, The Who's Tommy, The Outsiders, Lempicka, The Wiz, Suffs, Stereophonic, Hell's Kitchen, Cabaret, The Heart of Rock and Roll, Patriots, Uncle Vanya, The Great Gatsby, Mother Play

Only New Elements of the Following Productions Were Considered 

Just for Us, Here Lies Love, Merrily We Roll Along, Harmony, Prayer for the French Republic, Mary Jane

Additional Eligibility Considerations

Due to its Broadway timeline, Illinoise was viewed during its Park Avenue Armory run and considered in off-Broadway categories, where applicable.
 
The Broadway mounting of Suffs was determined to be at least 50% different than its original off-Broadway iteration. Therefore, it has been deemed eligible in all production categories and select acting categories.
 
Nominators were not invited to the off-Broadway runs of Here We AreDanny and the Deep Blue Sea, and Walk on Through: Confessions of a Museum Novice. Therefore, those productions were not in consideration for awards this season.